British wetlands face invasion by dangerous mussel
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Britain’s wetlands are being invaded by a mussel dubbed the 'number one most dangerous invasive species' by biologists.
Quagga Mussel is less than 5 cm long but breeds prolifically, forming vast colonies on hard surfaces that can smother boat hulls, block pipes and cause flooding. In the USA, the species is threatening to bring the Hoover Dam on the Arizona and Nevada borders to a standstill, and cut off water to Las Vegas.
It was recently identified by UK scientists as the most dangerous alien species for its threat to human infrastructure and potentially wildlife. Last week the species was found in Britain for the first time at Wraysbury Reservoir near Heathrow Airport, in Berkshire, a popular sailing, fishing and scuba diving lake that is also a nature reserve.
Conservationists are very concerned about Quagga Mussel, as an 'ecosystem engineer' because its vast capacity to filter water upsets the natural balance throughout the food web. They eat some pollutants, turning it into concentrated toxic faecal matter which can poison drinking water for people and wildlife.
London Wetland Centre WWT is downstream from Wraysbury. WWT’s Head of Conservation Policy, Jeff Knott, said: “This is a worrying but entirely predictable development that could be devastating to British wetlands. Quagga Mussels are likely to indirectly cause suffering and death for hundreds of thousands of native animals and plants, and cost millions of pounds in tax and water bills to protect drinking water supplies.
“These tiny mussels can be devastating but look so innocuous, which is why it’s so difficult for boaters, anglers and other water users to avoid accidentally transferring them between water bodies when they latch onto their equipment. That’s why it’s so important for all water users to remember the motto 'clean, check, dry' when they pack up their equipment to help slow the spread.
“Quagga Mussels are a prime example of why we need stronger controls on invasive species being brought into this country. Prevention is far cheaper and more effective than trying to control an infestation that’s already established. There are plenty of other dangerous potential invasive species. Quagga Mussels may have arrived, but we need to protect the UK against the next invasive species."
Earlier this year, Quagga Mussel was unanimously identified by a group of scientists as the greatest single threat to Britain’s wildlife of any alien species. The horizon scanning exercise identified 30 species that are likely to be brought into Britain through human activity, which are also likely to establish themselves and harm native wildlife. Quagga Mussel scored 'maximum threat' in all three categories.
A mature Quagga Mussel can produce one million eggs per season, and its larvae can drift downstream for four weeks and up to 200 miles before forming new colonies. However, the spread to new areas is usually due to human activity, as adults attach to boats, while the species' microscopic larvae are even more easily transported in cooling systems and ballast tanks. Originating in the Ukraine, the species spread across Europe as new canals opened.
It was introduced to the US by ships discharging ballast into the Great Lakes, and is now found in all of them. It has spread across North America and is flourishing in the warm waters of Lake Mead, formed by the Hoover Dam. Engineers are battling to stop the mussels colonising the dam’s turbines and blocking the pipes that supply water to Las Vegas.
Quagga Mussel is similar in size and appearance to Zebra Mussel, which is already established in Britain, including the stretch of the River Thames near the London Wetland Centre, where it regularly blocks pipes. Zebra Mussel has been implicated in several boating accidents and the cost of managing it on that stretch of water runs into millions. Quagga Mussel is expected to be more destructive and more expensive to manage.
The WWT ask that anyone finds a suspected Quagga Mussel should report at: www.nonnativespecies.org/alerts/quaggamussel.
Quagga Mussel is less than 5 cm long but breeds prolifically, forming vast colonies on hard surfaces that can smother boat hulls, block pipes and cause flooding. In the USA, the species is threatening to bring the Hoover Dam on the Arizona and Nevada borders to a standstill, and cut off water to Las Vegas.
It was recently identified by UK scientists as the most dangerous alien species for its threat to human infrastructure and potentially wildlife. Last week the species was found in Britain for the first time at Wraysbury Reservoir near Heathrow Airport, in Berkshire, a popular sailing, fishing and scuba diving lake that is also a nature reserve.
Conservationists are very concerned about Quagga Mussel, as an 'ecosystem engineer' because its vast capacity to filter water upsets the natural balance throughout the food web. They eat some pollutants, turning it into concentrated toxic faecal matter which can poison drinking water for people and wildlife.
London Wetland Centre WWT is downstream from Wraysbury. WWT’s Head of Conservation Policy, Jeff Knott, said: “This is a worrying but entirely predictable development that could be devastating to British wetlands. Quagga Mussels are likely to indirectly cause suffering and death for hundreds of thousands of native animals and plants, and cost millions of pounds in tax and water bills to protect drinking water supplies.
“These tiny mussels can be devastating but look so innocuous, which is why it’s so difficult for boaters, anglers and other water users to avoid accidentally transferring them between water bodies when they latch onto their equipment. That’s why it’s so important for all water users to remember the motto 'clean, check, dry' when they pack up their equipment to help slow the spread.
“Quagga Mussels are a prime example of why we need stronger controls on invasive species being brought into this country. Prevention is far cheaper and more effective than trying to control an infestation that’s already established. There are plenty of other dangerous potential invasive species. Quagga Mussels may have arrived, but we need to protect the UK against the next invasive species."
Earlier this year, Quagga Mussel was unanimously identified by a group of scientists as the greatest single threat to Britain’s wildlife of any alien species. The horizon scanning exercise identified 30 species that are likely to be brought into Britain through human activity, which are also likely to establish themselves and harm native wildlife. Quagga Mussel scored 'maximum threat' in all three categories.
A mature Quagga Mussel can produce one million eggs per season, and its larvae can drift downstream for four weeks and up to 200 miles before forming new colonies. However, the spread to new areas is usually due to human activity, as adults attach to boats, while the species' microscopic larvae are even more easily transported in cooling systems and ballast tanks. Originating in the Ukraine, the species spread across Europe as new canals opened.
It was introduced to the US by ships discharging ballast into the Great Lakes, and is now found in all of them. It has spread across North America and is flourishing in the warm waters of Lake Mead, formed by the Hoover Dam. Engineers are battling to stop the mussels colonising the dam’s turbines and blocking the pipes that supply water to Las Vegas.
Quagga Mussel is similar in size and appearance to Zebra Mussel, which is already established in Britain, including the stretch of the River Thames near the London Wetland Centre, where it regularly blocks pipes. Zebra Mussel has been implicated in several boating accidents and the cost of managing it on that stretch of water runs into millions. Quagga Mussel is expected to be more destructive and more expensive to manage.
The WWT ask that anyone finds a suspected Quagga Mussel should report at: www.nonnativespecies.org/alerts/quaggamussel.
